A Twist in the Myth: Bad Things Coming
by Kashoku1
Summary: With every passing day Kashoku and Kage become closer to their teams, but further away from the things that brought them to Earth. When tragedy strikes the SGC, relationships will shift and Sereclipse will never be what it once was. SEQUEL TO ATITM: Sereclipse


Kashoku's alarm went off in a raging thunder against her ear. Kage must have changed the settings on her phone again, because this was most definitely not her usual alarm tone. With a heavy groan she sat up, flipping her long hair out of her face and reached over to dismiss the obnoxious tune. With silence pleasantly filling the room again she called out, "Daniel?" Looking over her shoulder at the other side of the bed she saw that the sheets were pulled up and the pillows were propped up neatly against the headboard. "You made your side of the bed?" she muttered angrily to herself at the sight. With an agitated huff she flung the covers off of her enough to disrupt the neatness of the other half and hopped out of bed. "Daniel!" On bare feet she padded through the hallway towards the kitchen. The smell of coffee lingered in the air, which was hopeful.

Sure enough, Daniel was there at the counter, fully dressed and bag in hand as if he was ready to walk out the door. He looked up over his travel mug, "Oh, good. You're up. Is it going to take you long to get ready? I have an early meeting I need to get to."

Kashoku bit at her lower lip, trying to keep her frustration at bay. "Why didn't you tell me I needed to get up earlier? Or better yet, why didn't you just wake me up?"

"You were already in bed when I remembered it, and I didn't want to wake you up." He shrugged. "Can you at least wait to put your make-up on in the car?"

That did it. With an angered huff Kashoku flipped her hair over her shoulder and crossed her arms. "Go. I'll see you at work."

Daniel frowned. "How are you going to get there?"

"I'll figure it out! Go!" With a deep breath she added kindly, trying to salvage the situation, "Don't be late to your meeting."

Daniel seemed to hesitate before finally acquiescing. "Alright, bye." Grabbing his keys from the counter he left Kashoku alone in the apartment.

Scrolling down her contacts list on her phone Kashoku found Wells and pressed dial. Although she had recently gotten her license, she didn't yet feel comfortable to have her own vehicle and drive herself around without supervision. Daniel was her ride to work, and she was too emotionally exhausted to continue their fighting.

"What? I'm not late yet!" Wells's groggy voice answered the phone.

It made Kashoku smile. "I'm not calling because of that. I was going to ask if you had left yet, but I'll take your answer as a no."

"Nah, I might have probably just woken up. What's up?"

"I need you to give me a ride. Daniel was trying to be nice and let me sleep thinking it was my day off, so I was late getting up." The lie slipped easily off of her tongue. It had become increasingly easier over the past few months when her relationship with Daniel was brought up with her peers.

"So he left you."

"No, he was going to be late so I told him to go," she rebutted. That part was at least true. Kashoku knew Daniel would have waited had she asked, but the uncomfortable drives to and from work with him lately had her wanting to avoid it at every cost.

"Uh-huh. Yeah, I'll be over there in an hour. Text you when I'm a few blocks out."

"Thanks, Brandon." She hung up the phone and began changing, relieved that she had found a way to work, but still agitated at hers and Daniel's fight from the previous night trickling into the next day. It was childish. With not much time before Wells arrived, Kashoku haphazardly threw on a quick face in the mirror and put her hair up in a messy bun before heading down to the lobby of the apartments. Not a few minutes after receiving his text, Wells pulled up in his sports car.

"I owe you," Kashoku grinned thankfully as she threw her handbag in and settled into the passenger's seat.

"I'll add it to your tab." He winked and shifted the car into gear before it was off again.

They stayed in a comfortable silence for the majority of the trip, too sleep ridden to attempt real conversation. The sun was just now starting to rise on the other side of the mountains. As they began the ascent up the mountainside to the base Wells brought up the topic Kashoku had hoped would not come up.

"So you two are fighting, huh?" He asked casually.

"I never said that," Kashoku responded calmly. "I told you what happened. Why are you questioning it?"

"Because Daniel was part of our brief yesterday for today's mission," he pointed out. "He knew you didn't have the day off."

Oh. Sucking in a deep breath, she decided to simply admit the truth. "We might have had a disagreement last night that could have easily caused us both to forget those minor details."

"About what?" he asked curiously.

Kashoku rolled her eyes at the mere thought of the fight. "Yevon forbid-"

"God," Wells corrected. He and Carr had played huge factors in her assimilation to Earth's culture, and correcting her lingo was their favorite thing to do – especially when it came to trying to add cuss words into her vocabulary.

"God forbid I leave my makeup on the bathroom counter because there is nowhere else to store it with all his artifacts taking up every shelf in the apartment. And I'm not allowed to touch anything anymore after I accidentally broke his stupid African fertility statue!" When Kashoku looked over at Wells, he was giving her the most amused grin. "What's so funny?"

"Seeing you worked up like this." He gave a low chuckle before licking his lips thoughtfully. "But seriously. How long has this been going on?"

Kashoku sunk deeper into the seat, arms crossing. "I don't know. A few weeks I guess?"

"Really? Because this isn't the first time you've asked me to give you a ride. Or Carr. Or Ramirez. I know you've even asked Rodd once because we were all gone. You think that just because you ask different people that we don't all talk and notice something is going on?" Wells raised an eyebrow, waiting for her answer. "I cringe at the thought of you having to call Bentley for a ride."

"That wouldn't happen in a million years," Kashoku assured. She debated on whether or not to continue downplaying the situation with Daniel, but if she knew Wells as well as she thought she did, he was already well aware of their relationship issues. "Fine. It's been…off and on again for probably the past month. Things were going really well when I first moved in. Then…I don't know. Guess you learn a lot more about someone when you live with them."

Wells gave a snort as they cleared security and moved underground to the parking area. "Ain't that the truth. It'll drive you crazy. The makeup thing sounds like a pretty typical argument, but I don't like that he so easily left you to find your way to work. What if one of us can't give you a ride one day?" He put the car in park and turned it off. "It's bullshit, Kash."

"I know, and he would have waited if I had asked," Kashoku groaned in agreement, stepping out of the car. "We're working on it, okay? Can we just go to work now?"

"If he hurts you, I'm obligated to kill him, you know," Wells promised.

"Get in line behind Kage," Kashoku smiled. With that they moved into the comfort of their usual routine, passing through security with the newly added hand scanner after the last lockdown. Kashoku had acquired full clearance the moment she moved in with Daniel, but it never failed that she was still always coming in and out with someone. She and Wells parted ways at the locker rooms and in a comfortable silence she went through the motions of changing into her uniform. Wednesdays were blue days. Hair firmly tied back in a long ponytail she selected the button on the elevator for a few floors up to the mess hall since she had failed to grab herself any sort of meal prior to having to hitch a ride with Wells that morning. Daniel had been pushed to the far reaches of her mind until she regretfully saw him standing in the back of the line she was now approaching.

Sucking in a deep breath through her nose she took up the space behind him with a smile. "Make it to your meeting on time? Was it for an upcoming mission?"

"I did, thanks, and yeah. Mission isn't until tomorrow, but there was a lot to debrief," Daniel responded, hands firmly shoved into his pockets.

It wasn't the right time, but Kashoku couldn't help it. "I'm sorry that I broke your artifact and I'm sorry that I kind of took over the bathroom."

For a moment Daniel looked like he might try to argue, but he closed his eyes apologetically and ran his fingers over his temple. "I know. I just…I don't know. I know you didn't mean it."

Kashoku felt her jaw clench in small irritation at the lack of any kind of real apology, but it was a good start. "Daniel, we barely see each other, even when we live with one another, and when we are together we do nothing but fight. We start out having normal conversations that escalate into arguments. Our rides to and from work hold valuable time we could be spending with one another, but lately it's been nothing but an insatiable silence. It's not fair." Kashoku thanked the server with a smile and she took her tray and followed Daniel to a table.

"Fair?" Daniel's soft face turned back into the harsh lines she had been seeing so frequently of late. "What's fair about you constantly deciding to go out with Captain Wells and Carr instead of coming home and spending time with me? You sneak in at two and three in the morning hoping I don't notice that you smell of booze and smoke!"

"I invite you out every time we go do something and every time you say no!" Kashoku argued back irritably.

"I don't want to hang out with them, Kashoku!" he exclaimed, his voice carrying further than he intended. "I don't even want you to hang out with them! They are bad influences! There are so many dangerous habits – especially when Captain Bentley is involved – that you could pick up from them and you wouldn't know better!"

Kashoku could feel the shock and anger slam into her. "Why are you insinuating that my teammates would purposely expose me to something potentially dangerous and harmful?"

"Because I don't know them, Kashoku, and already they are exposing you to gateways. I'm worried already that they have you drinking way too much!" Daniel continued to argue, trying to show some sort of sense of concern rather than anger, but instead getting some sort of mix of the two that only added to Kashoku's irritation.

"It's called being social, Daniel," Kashoku glared. "We usually only have a few drinks – if that – when we go out. Believe it or not, we are all capable of being adults and controlling ourselves when we do. You are sitting here acting as if I come home blasted every night, incapable of functioning the morning after. You would know that I didn't if you ever bothered to stick around in the mornings! And yes, I go out with them all the time because they want to spend time with me. You never ask to do anything. It's always 'I have too much work to do.' So don't play that game with me!" Sucking in a shaking breath through her nostrils she decided against continuing on with their argument. It wasn't worth it. "I have a mission to get ready for." Leaving her food completely untouched she got up and left.

She needed to see Kage. With determined haste she made for SG-11's office, and was greeted with their usual robust vulgar.

"Well, well, if it ain't 'Five-dolla-love-me-long-time'," Bentley wiggled his eyebrows as Kashoku entered.

Kashoku had never seen the movie the reference was from, but Ramirez had explained it to her once, and it was insulting. Unfortunately, it was part of the SG-11 package, and she had learned over the past few months to tune Bentley out of most conversations. Even more unfortunately, he often made it a point to be noticed by her. Today, however, he seemed content to leave her alone once Kage gave the back of his chair a warning kick.

She had instantly picked up on Kashoku's distress. "Dou shita no?" Taking a good hard look at her friend, her eyes narrowed in anger. "Kare ga naniwoshita?"

"I'm just…" Kashoku sighed as she took a seat on Kage's desk. "I'm tired, Kage."

Kage's body straightened, jaw clenching. "I'll kill him."

Ramirez raised a curious brow from across the office. "Trouble in paradise, puta bonita?" The usual smile that the nickname received was nowhere to be found. Sucking in a breath, Ramirez abruptly announced to the room, "Alright, anyone with a dick needs to go whack one off in the gym."

"Nah, I took care of that a few minutes ago," Bentley replied cheekily.

Ramirez glared murder at him. "Out, asshole. I don't care if you go take a shit or go for round two but fuck off for a bit."

Bentley groaned. "But the gym's so far away! And baby, you know if you aren't there I don't have nothing to whack off to!"

Rafe had to muffle his snort, but he grabbed hold of his teammate's arm and pulled him up. "Come on, man, let's let the ladies do their thing." Bentley gave a whine of protest, but left the office without much fight beyond telling Kage not to open her filing drawer anytime soon.

There was a long disgusted silence where all three of them stared at the drawer in question, even though two of them knew for certain Bentley hadn't actually had the opportunity. Finally, Ramirez rolled her eyes and turned back to Kashoku, deciding to be the one to break the ice. "We've all held our tongues this past month, trying to respect your privacy with Jackson, but this is it. I ain't buying it anymore, puta."

"Oh, god," Kashoku groaned, fighting back the urge to cry. "Does everyone know?"

"No," Ramirez assured, "but we're practically your teammates we work together so much, and if we don't notice these kinds of things we don't deserve that title. You've been coming up with all these excuses why he's treating you the way he is, and I'm done with it."

"Stop," Kashoku said firmly, her fingers gripping tightly onto the edge of the desk. "It's a two-way street, okay? I've played my hand in this just as much as he has."

"Yeah, whatever, puta. I'm not saying you aren't an annoying cunt some days – I totally believe you give as much shit as he does, but you didn't come to us for impartial, fair opinions. I'm obligated to take sides, and his ain't the one I'm taking," she pointed out plainly. "I'm kind of with Kage on the whole 'not liking him' thing."

With a hesitant glance Kashoku looked to her best friend. Kage had a hardened jaw and darkened eyes. It was clear that she was holding something in. Blowing out a hot breath of air through her nose, she caved. "Just say it, Kage. You told me so."

"Yes," Kage agreed quickly, "I did. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy it isn't working out. The offer to kick his ass is always on the table, Kashy. In fact, it's really not an offer but a promise. Dump his ass and be done with it."

Kashoku huffed in disapproval. "No, thank you. We're going to work it out, I know it."

"You're all about those second, third, fourth, and fifth chances, aren't you, puta?" Ramirez hummed with disapproval, her weight shifting in her stance as she crossed her arms.

"I traveled millions of light years to be with him. If you did that, wouldn't you do all that you could to make it work?" Kashoku asked, hoping if she told herself that enough that maybe even she would believe it. Although a part of her still honestly believed that things could get better again, that hope had been dwindling with every conversation she and Daniel had.

"Nope," Ramirez answered plainly. "Especially not when that light year travel takes less than a fucking minute. But seriously, sometimes you can't fix what's broke, and you just have to go find a replacement."

Kashoku had come to the two women in hopes of comforting words, but had received the exact opposite. With a determined face she expressed with full certainty, "We are going to make this work." Sliding off the desk she left the office and made for the comfort of her own team. They were slated to head out soon, anyway. Wells and Carr were absent from the room, leaving the southern ginger as the only person in the office. It was actually somewhat relieving. "Morning, Jeremy. How are you doing?"

He smiled from his desk. "Pumped, ma'am. I'm excited to work with the Algorians on their shield system. I haven't really felt useful on a mission in a while."

"Don't kid yourself, you are always useful." She smiled as she put a supportive hand on his shoulder. "You promised me you would invite me over one night and introduce me to NASCAR, your guilty pleasure!"

Rodd responded with a bright smile. "Season hasn't quite started up yet, ma'am. And it is my guilty pleasure. The sport is so often tied to negative connotations for fans, but I grew up right next to a major venue for it. Kind of hard not to expose yourself to it. I promise as soon as the season starts up to invite you over, although watching on TV is nothing like seeing it firsthand."

"Look forward to it!" Kashoku beamed brightly, already feeling better with the mission at hand. "I guess Brandon and Robbie are already getting ready?"

Rodd gave a nod. "The major asked for them beforehand, but then they were headed to the locker rooms. We should probably get going as well."

Kashoku nodded. "Alright then. Shall we?"

Kage hated briefings. They were the bane of her existence. At least this time it was only General Hammond giving the brief. Once scientists involved themselves it was a gun to her temple. Kage had been pulled in on this mission due to the heavy presence of Jaffa. Whatever was on the planet was valuable enough for the SGC to want to get on the people's good side, and that meant helping them with their Goa'uld problem. Apparently, whatever System Lord had claimed Gwarrin hundreds of years ago had never been back to check up on it, leaving the Jaffa to just run amok. It sounded like an easy go in and massacre as far as she could tell. Why they needed to sit here and talk about tactics for an hour was beyond her. She could make quick work of this.

Kage, having spaced off into her own little world, didn't notice the meeting had ended until Bentley kicked her from underneath the table. The instant glare she shot across drew a grin from his smug face. "What. The fuck?"

"Where were you hanging out that entire meeting, because it wasn't in this room?" He grinned.

"I understand the mission: kill. Not much else I need to pay attention to, now is there?" Kage pushed herself out of the chair and rose to her feet.

"Right on," Bentley cheered. "Let's go perform some gratuitous violence then."

"The things that give you a boner," Ramirez huffed.

"Please, Margarita," Bentley drawled, "like snapping a few bones doesn't get your cunt all wet."

"Only if they are yours," Ramirez purred back.

"Shut your traps and get your gear on," Connors finally interjected. "No more of your bullshit. This is a high risk mission and I need all of your heads out of your asses, you hear me?"

"Yes, sir," Ramirez and Bentley responded, their attitudes quickly shifting.

Kage simply rolled her eyes. Whatever. Already in her Warrior sphere she was ready to go. This was going to be her first real mission. She had been on a few others where there had been a threat of violence breaking out, but this was the first time she was going to see real action. Her magic needed the workout, and she was happy to oblige.

Connors could sense Kage's eagerness as he walked through the doors to the bottom of the ramp where Kage waited. His intuition intrigued Kage, and the more she got to know her leader the more she came to have a respect for his skills as a soldier. It was a long way still from even touching the word 'like' with a stick. "Don't get too excited. This isn't a fucking free-for-all," the man warned.

"Yeah, yeah," Kage waved him off. "Give me the target and I'll take care of business, of that I can assure you."

Connors made no further comment as they waited for the rest of their team. Even as the event horizon settled into place, Kage could still sense he was highly unimpressed by her remarks. Popping the crick out of her neck she readied herself and began the march up the ramp and through the wormhole, emerging into what was very predictably a forest. The locals were waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs. Thankfully they were on a fairly similar level to advancement as those on Earth so they wouldn't be completely useless in the fight. SG-4 and 9 had come through earlier to lead the advance.

"Colonel Connors, I am Mira," a woman stepped forward extending her hand in greeting. Though she hadn't spoken it aloud, her uniform and overall bearing definitely seemed to indicate some sort of rank.

"Pleasure," Connors acknowledged. "I understand our other teams have been a great help to you, but you require a little more forceful action." He began following Mira as she motioned them along.

"Yes. We have made a huge dent in the Jaffa forces, but we are having problems penetrating their base. They have technology that has been able to take out our forces by the numbers and they have a shield. We know where the device is and how to disable it, but we cannot get close. I understand there is a member of your team who might be able to assist with this?"

Connors glanced back at Kage. "She might."

Kage smirked. Sounded like a job for Thief. "Tell me where and how, and I'll take care of it for you."

Mira gave an approving nod. "Good. I will go over the schematics with you."

It was rare that Kashoku got to see Rodd like this. He was in a euphoric bliss as the Algorian scientist who had introduced himself as Byyr walked him through their technology. It was some sort of large touch-screen that they were working with that even Kashoku was somewhat infatuated with.

"Like a kid in a candy store," Carr shook his head. "Glad someone is having fun around here."

"For someone who gets to do something everyone on Earth would kill to do, you sure do complain a lot," Ellis groaned, long ago irritated by Carr's comments.

"It ain't an easy job, sir, but someone has to do it and I happily volunteered," Carr replied accompanied with a sarcastic grin.

Kashoku smiled at the friendly bantering between her teammates, but elected not to join in, deciding instead to take the opportunity she had to learn. "How's it going?" she asked Rodd, coming to stand behind his right shoulder.

"Fantastic," Rodd beamed. "It'll take a lot of adjustments to our own technology, but I understand the mechanics and all the engineering behind their computer systems. It's not fancy shields or weapons, but being able to have this interactive system could be really useful with schematics and simulations. I think given some time I could create this back on Earth."

"That's great!" she cheered. "I'll be the first to test it out, right?"

He smiled at her and promised, "It would be no one else."

Kashoku was about to continue the conversation with a question about the models laid out on the screen in front of them when a door burst open with personnel.

"Byyr! The Kyrons have destroyed Point 15! There is a hole in our shields and they are attacking!" the man burst out in panic.

"Kryons?" Ellis questioned, instantly readying his weapons.

"They are our people who were infected with a disease," Byyr explained. "A virus that has caused them to go insane. They feed on their own kind and can pass on the disease to anyone they draw blood on."

"Zombie-pocalypse!" Carr cried in excitement as he, too, readied his weapon.

"Let's Resident Evil this bitch," Well agreed with great approval.

"Kashoku, stay here and keep these two out of trouble while they try and get the shield fixed," Ellis commanded.

Kashoku nodded and turned to Byyr. "Can you do that remotely here?"

Byyr nodded as the rest of SG-15 departed. "Yes. I can divert the power of our shield to cover the hole for a period of time that would allow us to make necessary repairs. Lieutenant Rodd, please assist me. I will begin rerouting the power here on the model," the scientist moved to the panel where a 3D model of their shield systems beamed from the screen. "Monitor the levels and tell me how to adjust."

Rodd nodded and began moving charts and numbers all across the screen, shouting out things Kashoku could not even begin to comprehend. Instead she turned and took a watchful eye on any entry points that the Kryons could come in through. No threat seemed to make themselves known while Rodd and Byyr shouted behind her, her breath holding for that one second danger presented itself.

"Got it!" Rodd bellowed in pride.

Almost immediately their radios began to cackle with Ellis's voice. "Shield is back online, but quite of few of these things made their way through. I think I saw one headed your way. Be advised. They go down easy, but they are quick sons-of-bitches."

Kashoku reached for her shoulder and pressed the appropriate button. "Understood." Without hesitation her SG uniform was replaced with the bright pink and teals of her Gunner uniform.

"Can you protect us?" Byyr questioned, doubt in his voice.

"Better than anyone," Rodd answered confidently.

A spark of pride flared up in Kashoku at the comment, and she only hoped she could live up to the expectations laid upon her by her teammate. A thunderous boom erupted from the door, a human sized dent now shaped in the metal. Kashoku readied her guns at her side. Sucking in a breath she let her magic flow and protective shields were cast on all three of them.

With another few body slams against the door the Kryons were through, and it was more than just the one Ellis had indicated. Kashoku and Rodd were instantly firing away, but Ellis had been right that they were quick. One lunged at Kashoku and she was able to dodge and fire a kick that stunned the creature long enough for her to get her shots out through its skull. Kashoku looked up in time to see one flying towards Rodd. Instinctively the man ducked, but the Kryon only came in contact with the shield illuminating the room in a brilliant blue. Kashoku took the moment to pull the Kryon away by its collar and place a shot between its eyes. It dropped to the floor and she quickly made work of the remaining two.

Satisfied that she had cleared the room of the threat she extended a hand to Rodd. "You okay?"

Rodd blew out a sigh of relief as he took her hand. "Thanks to you."

Kashoku chuckled softly as she helped him to his feet. "You have a weapon, Jeremy. You have to learn to shoot it."

"I know," Rodd groaned in defeat.

"Local military says they were able to contain and have this under control. We are on our way back. Are you guys okay?" Ellis spoke through the radio.

"We're fine," Kashoku responded. "Some Kryons broke through, but threat neutralized and no harm done to us."

"Roger. Be there in a few."

Heart racing with adrenaline Kashoku let her dress sphere dissipate. The scientists brushed themselves off and almost immediately went back to working on the repairs via the computer screen. Rodd was still shaken, even though he paid attention in great detail to Byyr's words. Kashoku just hoped she could always be there to protect him.

It was almost laughable at how easily it was to sneak past all the Jaffa's defenses without being detected. True, SG-11 and several members of the Gwarrin military were providing a distraction, but she was confident that she could have easily done this without it. She wondered how anyone got anything done without the use of dress spheres. There had only been two Jaffa guarding the device and she had swiftly and silently taken care of them without any trouble. Flipping her pony tail over her shoulder she began tinkering with the shield. Honestly, it would have been far easier to just destroy the damn thing, but Mira was wanting to preserve it to use it later, and it wasn't long before the shield was deactivated and the panicked sounds of Jaffa shouting filled her ears.

With satisfaction pouring from her Kage changed to her Warrior sphere and gave her sword a twirl before running full-blast towards the fight. So focused on what was in front of them, the Jaffa were taken by surprise and fell fast and quick under Kage's sword. Knocking the final Jaffa onto his back she raised her sword and rammed it through his gut with fulfillment. Silence fell over the base as Connors's voice called for cease-fire. Kage pulled her sword from the corpse and smugly made her way to her team.

"You did it! Thank you! Your skill was very impressive." Mira praised the Spiran.

Kage gave a nonchalant shrug. "It was kind of too easy. Anymore Jaffa need killing?"

"You may assist your other teams, SG-4 and 9 if you are able to. We would greatly appreciate it," Mira mentioned.

"You get too much pleasure out of killing things, even for me," Ramirez uttered with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, now, we all have our kinks, Margarita," Bentley defended her, though Kage wasn't sure she really needed that as a defense. The man was already wiggling his brows at Ramirez and continuing salaciously, "Though I'm still waiting to hear more of yours."

Connors rolled his eyes. "Immature little fucks, the lot of you." Turning his gaze to Kage he raised his chin. "Well done. Finally putting all your talents to use. Has to feel a lot better than sitting around the SGC all day."

Kage clenched her jaw. The truth was, she had enjoyed it - immensely. It felt good going out and doing something for once. Not that she was going to admit that to Connors any time soon. "It's not Spira, but it'll do," she said.

There was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. "Well, let's not disappoint. Might as well give the guys a hand towards the north. We'll be happy to sit back and let you take care of it, if you want."

Kage snorted. "You'll just get in the way if you don't. My finger sometimes tends to slip and I don't notice the difference between friend and foe." Connors simply grinned that toothy grin that irritated the fuck out of her. It was almost scary. Almost.

The debriefing killed any high that Kage had been on from her killing spree. Connors spewed out nothing but words of praise towards Kage and how helpful she had been. Kage had never been one to enjoy being commended for her actions. She was a fear driven person, and would rather people be in awe over her in a negative light. Although this would mean she would more than likely start going on more missions where there was the potential for action, it would also mean she'd start going on more missions where there wasn't.

But it might mean going on more missions with Kashoku and less time spending time in her room by herself. With a frustrated groan she admitted to herself that maybe this was working out. Thoughts swimming in confusion she followed behind Ramirez to head for the showers. Once done she sought out Kashoku who was working on her mission report. It took her a lot longer than the other members of her team, but she had improved greatly over the past few months in her writing abilities.

Kashoku beamed when she noticed her friend. "Hey! How did it go?"

"I pillaged and plundered: what I do best. It was fun, for all five seconds it took me to eliminate the threat. Honestly, Kashy, it's embarrassing to think that Earth has such a hard time fighting the Jaffa," Kage huffed.

"Your face is embarrassing," Carr muttered from his desk area.

Kage gave him a glare while Kashoku chuckled. Kashoku brushed a strand of hair out of her face and smiled. "I'm glad it went well, Kage."

Kage shrugged. "How was your gallivant across the galaxy?"

"Okay," Kashoku mused. "We ran into a local fiend, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. We are finally getting the next two days off. That'll give me a day to do something with Daniel."

Kage rolled her eyes at the mention of the archaeologist, but she knew better than to bring the subject up in front of her teammates. "Yes, well, it must be nice to be able to go off base."

Kashoku sighed. "Give it time, Kage. You knew this would happen. Keep doing well on missions and it'll give the Pentagon more of a reason to allow you some freedom."

"Whatever," Kage mumbled as she fiddled with one of Kashoku's pens. "Bentley wanted to introduce me to some of the games they have here, so I'll at least be occupied for a while tonight."

"I'm glad you are getting along with them," Kashoku admitted. "I was worried with all the strong personalities you all might have some issues."

"Oh, there are some issues alright, but it could be way worse. Ramirez and Rafe are alright, and Connors at least knows how useful I can be out there. I am caught between a never-ending battle of wanting to kill or praise Bentley though. There's always such a fine line," she complained.

"Kill. The answer is always kill," Wells piped in.

Kashoku gave another laugh. "Well, either way. In terms of 'Kage' things are going well."

Kage shrugged again. "Meh. Well, I should leave you to your report. I already finished mine." Kashoku gave her a glare as she walked out.

Kashoku was still trying to finish up her report as Wells and Carr began wrapping things up for the day and were ready to head out. Both men had offered to help, but she had refused, wanting to do it herself. Wells asked if he needed to stay to take her home, but Kashoku waived him off, assuring him that Daniel would do so. Things had been rocky between them that morning, but she was determined to make things right on the ride home.

Kashoku hadn't noticed that Rodd had gone out and changed to his civilian clothes when he approached her desk. "Headed out?"

"Uh, yeah," Rodd nodded. "But I…I. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to come to my place and have dinner? Just as a way of saying thank you."

Kashoku gave him a puzzled look. "What for?"

Rodd bit at his lower lip. "For everything. You are the only one who stands up for me against Captain Carr and you encourage me all the time. I mean, our team is far from mean or anything, but I guess I'm an easy target. I just… Thank you for being there for me."

Kashoku could feel her heartstrings being tugged on with a great deal of force. "You don't need to thank me, Jeremy. It's a common courtesy you deserve. You and Major Carter are the smartest people I've ever met."

Rodd's pale skin flushed bright red bringing out the freckles spattered across his cheeks. "I'd still like to make you dinner. I haven't had a good southern meal in a long time. Fried chicken and grits makes too much for me to eat, but no one can beat my momma's recipe."

Kashoku had wanted to spend the evening with Daniel. She had wanted to make peace, but it was a much easier decision for her than it should have been. "I'd love that. I was just sending off this report and then I'll go change. Meet you back here in a few?"

Rodd gave an enthusiastic nod. "Sure. I'll be happy to take you to Dr. Jackson's place when we are done, too."

"Great," Kashoku smiled. She sent off the report to Hammond and then headed to the locker rooms to change. She hadn't worn the best outfit this morning, but she supposed Rodd wouldn't really care.

"Going out?" Daniel called to her as she made her way back to the elevator.

Kashoku turned around, Daniel approaching in his own civilian wear. She felt her heart sink. "Yeah. Jeremy invited me to his place for dinner. Apparently his mother's recipes are the best around." She gave a small laugh as they entered the elevator together. "I'm sorry; I thought you might be working late tonight. I'm not trying to -"

"Don't," Daniel interjected. "You don't need to be sorry. I'm the one that should apologize about my comments earlier. I shouldn't have made those accusations. I know you are getting close to your team, and that's how it should be. They are your family."

A weight lifted off of Kashoku's shoulders with the apology. "At the same time, I need to make more of an effort to do things with you."

"Well, the same could be said for us both," Daniel admitted. "Go. Have fun. Nothing beats a good home-cooked southern meal. I'll catch you later tonight?"

"Of course." Kashoku smiled as the elevator doors opened and she stepped out on her floor. She could feel a new bounce in her step as she approached the office. Beaming she stuck out a hand towards Rodd. "Let's go!"


End file.
